The San Diego Padres have not been afraid to pursue and lock down headline talent in recent years, between the signings of Manny Machado and Yu Darvish, in addition to the trade for Juan Soto, as they continue to try and compete in an arms race with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
That's why it only comes with slight surprise that the Padres have announced they are giving star pitcher Yu Darvish a new extension that will sign him with the team through his age 41 season. The new deal, announced by the Padres on Thursday, will pay Darvish $108 million overall. He was already under contract for $18 million for the coming season, so the new extension will add on 5 years and $90 million to that total.
While a contract that keeps a pitcher locked down to such an advanced age clearly carries significant risk, $18 million a year for a pitcher of Darvish's stature could prove to be a great move for the Padres. Last year he put up a 3.10 ERA with strikeout and walk rates (25.6% and 4.8%) far beyond the league average. He also was throwing gas, posting his second-highest career velocity on his fastball, clocking in at 95 mph despite throwing over 190 innings.
With his new contract, it appears Darvish will finish out his career with San Diego, finally finding a long-term home after bouncing between several teams in his career.
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